1 year old

Here's what is going on with Noah this week, according to babycenter.com;

That major rite of passage is almost here, if it hasn't happened already — some time this month, your baby may take his first steps alone. (If he doesn't, don't worry — it takes some children several more weeks or months to start toddling.) If he's like most children, your little one will take those early strides on tiptoe with his feet turned outward. Keep the camera ready to capture the moment!

Your baby's play probably will start shifting from mastering his fine motor skills — he's got that thumb-and-forefinger grasp down pat — to exercising larger muscles. Some children this age have an attention span of two to five minutes for quiet activities, although your child's favorite games may not be all that quiet.

 

Your child probably thinks it's fun to push, throw, and knock everything down. He'll give you a toy as well as take one, and he likes games where he can put things in containers and dump them out again. This works well with blocks in buckets or boxes and with pots and pans, which he can nest inside one another. He'll thrill to the loud sounds of those pots and pans banging together, too.

Our little boy isn't a baby anymore.  Wow, how time flies!  This has been a great year, so much more exciting and special than we ever could have imagined.  This little boy has captured our hearts, and taught us about a completely different kind of love than we had already known.

Noah is full of laughter.  He loves to be the center of attention and will carry on with growls and other goofy noises until he has everyone in the room staring at him.  He loves to play with his toy cars and make fun car sounds as he pushes them around.  He LOVES to be outside.  He is constantly busy.  When we kneel down he runs at us and throws himself into our open arms for a great big hug.  That is about all of the cuddling and snuggling we can get out of him though, before he's on to the next thing.  He loves to sit on our laps while we read him books.  He loves dogs and cats, but doesn't understand to stroke them softly, rather than wildly bat at their heads.  He LOVES to eat, and wants to do it constantly.

We've successfully cut out the nursing before his morning nap and it was SO much easier than I expected.  Once our bodies adjust, I'll work on cutting out the nursing before his afternoon nap, and he'll be down to just two a day.